First, I would like to congratulate the membership on a job well done at
this year's annual meeting. The CSG's sponsored sessions presented
a good overview of our interests to the broader community and stimulating
for our membership. The organizers and presenters all deserve our
thanks and commendation.

Second, I would like to thank the Board for their service. Volunteering
to serve an organization such as this is most often its own reward, but
you all should know that your efforts are appreciated.

Next, I want to bring to your attention efforts which were raised at
the annual meeting, toward which the CSG membership might contribute.
One was a request from Reg Golledge (golledge@geog.ucsb.edu) for cooperation
on the Geography Research and Education Network. This, I understand,
is intended as a web-link-based digital library of course resources, lecture
notes, laboratory and exercise units, and case studies (perhaps developed
in support of more formal publication), which display the kinds of things
geographers know and can do. In addition to materials, web programming
support is also needed.

A somewhat similar request was made by Ron Abler (rabler@aag.org).
The AAG is reworking its "Careers in Geography" information on the web,
with an eye toward recruiting undergraduate students to geography in preparation
for non-academic jobs. To that end, a set of vignettes (300-400 words
and a photograph or two) featuring recent graduates at work in non-academic
jobs is sought. Things with "undergraduate appeal" are especially
desired. I encourage you to think how you can contribute to these
efforts.

Turning to the CSG, there are a couple of issues on our agenda for this
year. One is consideration of a name change for the CSG; there are
essays offering arguments for and against the change in this newsletter.
Give these arguments your full consideration. (I won't weigh-in on this
issue from the Chair's Column.)

We also have some by-laws changes before us, relating to the use of
email as a medium for voting within the CSG. According to the AAG
we have 472 members, the email list (extracted from the AAG's membership
information) has 373 members with valid email addresses that do not generate
"permanent delivery" errors, and of those about two dozen will generate
various transient delivery errors for any given mailing. Thus, approximately
75% of the membership is reliably reached very quickly and inexpensively
by email, 20% are not reached this way, and 5% may or may not get a message
to the list.

Finally, it is time to plan sessions for the 2002 Annual Meeting.
You probably already have the May AAG Newsletter with its Call for Participation.
I encourage you to participate through presenting your recent work and
by organizing sessions and workshops. The CSG relies on the
Vice-Chair to coordinate our program with the AAG's program committee:
session organizers, please make contact with Rex Cammack, to make the assembly
of the program as smooth as possible.

Matt McGranaghan, Cartography Specialty Group Chair
Associate Professor
Department of Geography
University of Hawai'i at Manoa

Name Change of the CSG: Pro

Jeremy W. Crampton

As we consider the pros and cons of changing the CSG name we might
take a glance at the first issue of the (true!) new millennium of
the journal Cartography and GIS (CaGIS). This is a special issue
devoted to a series of reports on cartography and geovisualization.

The editors, long-time CSG member Alan MacEachren (PSU) and his colleague
Menno-Jan Kraak (ITC, Netherlands), identified four major topics in geovisualization:
representation, integration with computational methods, interface design,
and cognitive /usability issues. These four areas were discussed
under the aegis of the International Cartography Association (ICA) Commission
on Visualization and Virtual Environments, which was first formed in 1993.

All of these four areas would seem to have strong ties with the interests
of CSG members. For instance, representation includes problems of
how to show the large geospatial data sets typically well captured in the
map's power to synoptically present data. Consider the cancer choropleth
maps cited in Edward Tufte's first book, which each portray some 21,000
numbers, or the even more remarkable depiction of 1.3 million galaxies
in the northern galactic hemisphere. As Tufte observes, "no other
method for the display of statistical information is so powerful [as the
map]." But even these numbers pale in the face of today's "terabyte
challenge" (1,048,576 megabytes), the size of much spatial data (e.g. a
digital immersive environment for scientific collaboration). What
are the representational methods and concepts needed to handle such large
data volumes? On the one hand cartographers might seem well positioned
to address this issue by dint of their focus on the visual, but on the
other hand the history of the discipline offers only scanty knowledge on
these emerging issues such as building interactivity variables into a map-enabled
cell phone or PDA.

Keith Clarke, past-Chair of the CSG, argued for increasing "democratization
of cartography" in his CSG Newsletter column for Winter 1996. By
this he meant taking the tools and benefits of what he called "mapping
and visualization" out of the sole hands of cartography and putting them
into those of the "citizens of the real world." I think he's
right. What does this involve? The Open GIS Consortium (OGC)
has estimated that up to 80% of all data is spatially referenced, including
business data. This is potentially a huge market: some estimates
place the size of Locationally Based Services (LBS) at a staggering $40
billion by the year 2006 (up from $1 billion in 2000). Now that the
US government has mandated that by October 2001 your location must be provided
when making an emergency call on a cell phone, we can expect to see even
more interest in this area. Cartographers are a player in this game,
but we must reach out to those in GIS, GPS, wireless technology and Intenet
mapping. The concepts of geovisualization allow us to go beyond the
traditional role of maps which present the conclusions of the cartographer,
to show that they can be extraordinarily powerful tools for exploring data
for the goal of knowledge construction. What better way to place
those tools into the hands of scientists or local communities on the wrong
side of the "digital divide" than by working to provide knowledge construction
tools for spatial data?

Ironically, CaGIS, where these papers appear, has itself gone through
changes of name. Not without some debate did it change from The American
Cartographer to Cartography and Geographic Information Systems to Cartography
& Geographic Information Science (emphasizing scientific enquiry rather
than technologies). There was some fear at the time that cartography
would be swallowed by GIS/GISci, a fear debated at Judy Olsen's AAG Presidential
Plenary Session under the question "Has GIS Killed Cartography?"

Has it? I don't know. What is clearer is that the fear has
subsided somewhat as people are increasingly realizing that the discipline
and practice of cartography has been evolving all along, and is now evolved
to such an extent that the word "cartography" is not sufficiently descriptive
enough to capture is all. And is seems that what we faced with GIS
we now face with geographic visualization. Call it the "Fermat Syndrome,"
after the mathematician who made a note in a book of arithmetics he was
reading that he "had discovered a marvelous proof, but alas this margin
is too small to contain it." What is also clearer is that the new
millennium sees a mind-boggling increase in interest in mapping, almost
all of it outside of the traditional boundaries of the cartographic discipline
(I've argued before that Mapquest.com is the largest publisher of maps
in the history of humanity). We truly are seeing the "democratization
of cartography."

Cartography continues, to be sure, with some of its longstanding interests
such as map design and map use, but in such radically different contexts,
and with the new challenges such as those described in CaGIS, that it is
truly suffering from the Fermat Syndrome. But we need not fear an
abandonment of traditional cartographic concerns if we embrace geovisualization,
as a recent article by Anne Kelly Knowles points out (Cartographic Perspectives
Spring 2000). Knowles found that teaching geographic visualization
without GIS can be an effective way of getting students to think spatially.
Geographic visualization need not always use expensive and advanced technologies;
it is an equal opportunity set of tools and concepts. Indeed, as
Knowles shows, it can readily be used in historical cartographic studies
or the history of cartography itself.

In conclusion therefore, a judicious solution to this situation, and
the one supported here, is to expand the name of the group to include the
expanded activities of many of its members. I urge you therefore
to vote "yes" to the name change.

Name Change of the
CSG: Con

Keith Clarke

Cartography is a discipline of continuity. Varenius' General Geography
of 1650 varies only marginally in content from the basic cartography of
a contemporary textbook. In contrast, Geography has broadened considerably
since, and now includes many sub-disciplines well represented by the AAG
specialty groups. While disciplinary splinter groups are one way
to capture breadth, this is not a way to capture the integrated nature
of contemporary science. Cartography too has seen a transition to
integration, largely because of the introduction of the computer.
Traditional divisions within the discipline (map design, communication,
mathematical cartography, geodesy) have been considered less important
than a content-based definition that has been highly effective, i.e. it
must involve a map. This loose definition has allowed very disparate
cartographic interests,
including those of map historians, collectors, practitioners and scientists,
to coexists peacefully. I am concerned that a name change will create
unnecessary division, to the detriment of all.

Now we have a new fad, Geovisualization, seeking to rename that which
already exists. In doing so, it adopts a single viewpoint, increasing
the importance of a sub- discipline to disciplinary status. Quite
simply, visualization is and always was part of cartography. Naming
it as a separate but equal sub-discipline not only excludes those interested
in maps for other reasons, but also diminishes the whole, the integrative
nature of cartography as a single discipline that straddles science, social
science, art and the humanities.

Visualization itself is far broader than being simply a part of cartography.
It is indeed a new scientific method. I have used the definition
"use of the human visual processing system assisted by computer graphics,
as a means for the direct analysis and
interpretation of information." This is a form of reasoning,
and clearly it includes reasoning without the use of maps. Non-map
graphics, valuable as they may be for data exploration, are simply not
maps. This does not mean that non-traditional maps are not cartographic,
on the contrary cartography has easily absorbed those graphic devices that
have a clear tie to geographic space, such as virtual images, three- dimensional
renderings, and perspective views. So including visualization as
equal to cartography erases the only unifying component of the definition
of cartography as a discipline, i.e. the map.

There are many superficial reasons not to change. A sure way to
communicate confusion and weakness to other disciplines is to continuously
change names with the fashions and euphemisms of the era. Librarians
hate title changes. Departments have new strengths or weaknesses
in relation to the new way of defining our group. Public recognition
with a single concept will diminish. Schoolchildren will be confused.
We will lose membership. We will lose our distinction from other
specialty groups.

In summary, I simply pose the question why? If sensible and profitable
benefits are to be gained by a name change, then I'll gladly be first to
vote in its favor. If the change serves narrow interests and disunity,
then quite simply, include me out!

Recent presentations by Waldo Tobler ("Exploring Geography
Cartographically," "Unusual Map Projections," and "Qibla Maps" can be found
on the website
http://www.geog.ucsb.edu/people/tobler.htm
under the Recent Presentations link.

USGS Offers US Forest Service Maps

Joseph Kerski

To provide a greater access to maps of the nation's 192 million acres of
national forests and grasslands, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and
the U.S. Forest Service have entered into an agreement to make Forest Service
maps available from the USGS.

The new agreement is an expansion of a successful pilot program began
two years ago by the Forest Service Rocky Mountain Region and the USGS.
Under the new agreement, all Forest Service regional offices will be able
to participate in the USGS map sales program.

Previously, the maps were available only from Forest Service offices,
select interpretive associations, and limited retail sales outlets.
Now they can be ordered from the USGS or any of its authorized re-sellers
in the business partner network, which can be viewed at
http://mapping.usgs.gov/esic/usimage/dealers.html. The USGS sells
and distributes about 3 million paper maps every year, and the new one-stop
shopping will allow customers to purchase USGS topographic and Forest Service
maps together, providing enhanced customer service.

USGS topographic maps usually show both natural features such as mountains,
valleys, plains, lakes, rivers and vegetation, and constructed features
such as roads, boundaries, transmission lines and major buildings.
A Forest Service map will complement these features with information on
available recreation use, local plant and wildlife information, trails
and visitors centers, facilities available, campgrounds and picnic areas,
color photographs of points of interest and activities. National
forests and grasslands can be located on the Internet by using an interactive
map at http://www.fs.fed.us/recreation/map.shtml.

1970 National Atlas
Online

The best collection of twentieth century maps of the United States is
now online, thanks to the Library of Congress. The Library has digitized
and republished all of the maps from the 1970 National Atlas of the United
States . The entire collection of high-quality, full-color atlas maps may
be viewed at http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/census3.html.

The current set of National Atlas maps are online at: http://www.nationalatlas.govThis site, a combined effort of over 25 federal agencies, state agencies,
and ESRI, features aquatic biology, population, mining, manufacturing,
human health, and a host of other measures and features.

The visualization sessions co-sponsored by the Cartography Specialty Group,
Geographic Information Systems Specialty Group, and the Environmental Perception
and Behavioral Geography Specialty Group at the 2001 AAG Annual Meeting
in New York City were a great success! Many thanks to the participants
who made the sessions so interesting and informative, and to the organizers
of related sessions in the series (Andre Skupkin, Sara Fabrikant,
Scott Bell, and Tony Richardson). Thanks also to the members
of the audience for their attendance and attention! And special thanks
to Scott White, co-organizer of the series.

At the 2001 Meeting, there were a total of 25 participants in five different
sessions over two days. Participants came from academia and government
research centers. Over 21 different academic institutions were represented
from the U.S. and abroad.

The sessions in visualization at the 2002 meeting in Los Angeles
will once again be organized by Scott White of Fort Lewis College (white_s@fortlewis.edu)
and Robert Maxwell Beavers of Samford University (rmbeaver@samford.edu).
Please contact them if you are interested in participating in or
organizing a visualization session, or if you are thinking of organizing
a related session.

Application materials must be forwarded to AAG as a group, so please
adhere to the earlier deadlines provided in the following list. Your application
materials, registration forms and fees should be sent to Scott White (white_s@fortlewis.edu),
not to AAG. The collected materials will be sent to AAG as a group
immediately after the deadlines listed below.

AAG Deadline for PAPER abstracts is 8/31/01Scott's deadline for receiving all application materials (including
registration form and fees) for PAPER presenters is 8/24/01.

AAG Deadline for ILLUSTRATED PAPER abstracts is 9/28/01
Scott's deadline for receiving all application materials (including
registration form and fees) for ILLUSTRATED PAPER presenters is 9/21/01.

Maps and the Internet
Workshop

Michael Peterson

The ICA Commission on Maps and the Internet is sponsoring a workshop in
Guangzhou, China, in association with South China Normal University, the
Guangdong Academy of Sciences and the ISPRS Commission IV/2. The
workshop will be July 31-Aug. 2 at the Baiyun Hotel in central Guangzhou.
Immediately following the workshop, Dr. Jianya Gong of Wuhan University
will accompany the participants to Wuhan and provide a tour of the National
GIS Laboratory. From here, the group will proceed on to the International
Cartographic Congress in Beijing.

If you would like to reserve a room at the Baiyun Hotel to attend the
workshop, please contact Dr. Bin Li at bin.li@cmich.edu.

National Geographic
Cartography Awards

David Miller

National Geographic is pleased to announce that Rus Maki, St. Cloud State
University, Minnesota, and Colleen Le Drew, Centre of Geographic Sciences,
Nova Scotia, won this year's National Geographic Society Award in Cartography.

Rus Maki received $800, along with a National Geographic atlas, because
of his strong academic achievement in cartography. His map entry, "Invasion
of the Zebra Mussels," is a dynamic map composition with horror- movie
potential. Colleen Le Drew received $400 for her high academic performance.
Her entry, "The Lighthouses of Southeastern Australia," visualizes a historic
theme and is rich in color and symbolism. These award winning maps
can be viewed on the National Geographic Cartography Award websitehttp://www.nationalgeographic.com/maps/caward,
which also provides information about the competition.

National Geographic thanks all students who took the time to apply for
this award. The map submissions were professionally done and covered a
variety of intriguing themes. Also, please consider entering next
year if you qualify--often students win the award on the second application.

The Cartography Specialty Group sponsored the annual Honors Competition
for Student Papers on cartographic topics at the 2001 Meeting of the AAG
in New York City. Congratulations to the participants in this year's competition!

First Place - $500:Erik B. Steiner
Department of Geography
The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA 16902.
"Region Representation and Cognitive Distance Distortion."

Second Place - $250:Isaac Brewer
Department of Geography
GeoVISTA Center
The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA 16802.
"The Design and Implementation of Temporal, Spatial, and Attribute
Query Tools for Geovisualization."

Congratulations for selection as finalists to:James B. Herrington
Department of Geography
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA 24060.
"The Use of Animated Maps in the Classroom."

Amy L. Griffin
Department of Geography
GeoVISTA Center
The Pennsylvania State University
State College, PA 16801.
"Feeling It Out: The Use of Haptic Visualization for Exploratory
Geographic Analysis."

Master's
Thesis Research Grant Award

Trudy Suchan

Masters students, begin your summer by writing up your research proposal
for possible support by the CSG! June 15 is the next application
deadline for the CSG's Master's Thesis Research Grant Program. These
grants are available to masters students working on cartographic research
and who are enrolled in a geography degree program. Grants are available
up to $300 and may be used for items necessary to research such as travel,
materials, equipment, and human subject fees.

An application form can be obtained from the Non- Academic Director
(contact information follows). The student also will submit a three-page
description of the research plan, and human-subjects clearance (if the
research involves human subjects)
must be obtained before grant money can be awarded. Three people review
each proposal. Other deadlines for submission are November 1 and
March 15 of each year. For more details on the program, go to http://www.csun.edu/~hfgeg003/csg/master.html

The RSSG, GIS-SG, and Cartography (CSG) specialty groups are once again
co-sponsoring a student poster competition at the 2002 Annual Meeting in
Los Angeles, being held March 19th to 23rd, 2002. The main
theme of the poster should deal with scientific developments in or applications
of remote sensing, GIS, or cartography. The student is required
to be the sole or first author.

Awards will be given for the top three posters. Students must
be current members of one of the three AAG specialty groups by the AAG
abstract submission deadline (28 September 2001). The student should
submit the abstract by 17 September 2001 to be eligible to enter
the competition.

After the final competitors have been selected they will be notified
to re-submit their abstract online individually (this on line submission
must be completed by 28 September 2001).

Detailed information on AAG program participation can be found in the
June AAG Newsletter and on the AAG web home page during the first weeks
of June (http://www.aag.org).
Specific information on the student illustrated poster competition
can be found on the RSSG web page (http://www.earthsensing.com/rssg/index.html)
or by contacting the sources listed below. We encourage you to participate!

Any questions can be directed to Ludmila Monika Moskal, RSSG Student
Director, at the Department of Geography and Kansas Applied Remote
Sensing Program, University of Kansas, voice: (785) 864-7728, fax: (785)
864-0392 or email: moskal@ukans.edu.

British Cartographic
Society Symposium

An invitation has been extended to attend the British Cartographic Society's
38th Annual Symposium and Map Curator's Workshop, scheduled for September
13th to 16th at the University of Liverpool.

Sessions will include Maritime Mapping, Marketing Maps and Cartographic
Products, Ordnance Survey Review and Prospects, Mapping Urban Spaces, The
Geography and History of Liverpool, Helen Wallis Memorial Lecture, and
a Map Curator's Group (theme: acquisition).

Calendar

July 9-August 10, 2001Popular Cartography and Society: A Summer Institute in
the History of Cartography.Chicago, Illinois.For information email Susan Hanf at hanfs@newberry.org

July 31-August 2, 2001Workshop on Maps and the Internet in Guangzhou, China,preceding the 20th International Cartographic Conference
in Beijing 2001For information email Michael Peterson at Michael_Peterson@unomaha.edu

September 13-16, 200138th Annual Symposium and Map Curator's Workshop of the
British Cartographic Society.University of Liverpool, England.For information contact David Fairbairn at Dave.Fairbairn@ncl.ac.uk